The General Presidency of Haramain (), is a Saudi government agency responsible for the development and administration of the Islamic holy sites of the

Masjid al-Haram , native_name_lang = ar , religious_affiliation = Islam , image = Al-Haram mosque - Flickr - Al Jazeera English.jpg , image_upright = 1.25 , caption = Aerial view of the Great Mosque of Mecca , map ...

and the

Masjid an-Nabawi Al-Masjid an-Nabawi (), known in English as the Prophet's Mosque, is a mosque built by the Islamic prophet Muhammad in the city of Medina in the Al Madinah Province of Saudi Arabia. It was the second mosque built by Muhammad in Medina, after Qub ...

, facilitated by its religious, technical and administrative departments. The agency was founded on 8 May 2012 by a royal decree from

King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia Abdullah bin Abdulaziz Al Saud ( ar, عبدالله بن عبدالعزيز آل سعود ''ʿAbd Allāh ibn ʿAbd al ʿAzīz Āl Saʿūd'', Najdi Arabic pronunciation: ; 1 August 1924 – 23 January 2015) was King and Prime Minister of Saudi A ...

. Headquartered in the Masjid al-Haram in

Mecca Mecca (; officially Makkah al-Mukarramah, commonly shortened to Makkah ()) is a city and administrative center of the Mecca Province of Saudi Arabia, and the Holiest sites in Islam, holiest city in Islam. It is inland from Jeddah on the Red ...

, the agency is overseen by the President who is appointed by royal order. The incumbent President of the agency is

Abdul-Rahman al-Sudais Abdul Rahman Ibn Abdul Aziz al-Sudais ( ar, عَبْدُ ٱلرَّحْمَٰنِ بْنُ عَبْدِ ٱلْعَزِيزِ ٱلسُّدَيْسِ, ʻAbd ar-Raḥman ibn ʻAbd al-ʻAziz as-Sudais), better known as Al-Sudais, is one of the nine i ...

imam Imam (; ar, إمام '; plural: ') is an Islamic leadership position. For Sunni Muslims, Imam is most commonly used as the title of a worship leader of a mosque. In this context, imams may lead Islamic worship services, lead prayers, ser ...

of the Masjid al-Haram, who was appointed the president of the agency the same day it was formed, with his term being renewed twice since by King Salman of Saudi Arabia.

History

The General Presidency was founded on 8 May 2012 by a royal decree from

, who also appointed

as its president. He has been re-appointed to the position twice since by King Salman of Saudi Arabia, in 2016 and 2020 as is the current incumbent.

Administration

The agency oversees several other departments overseeing various other aspects of the two mosques, such as the

Kiswah Kiswa ( ar, كسوة الكعبة, ''kiswat al-ka'bah'') is the cloth that covers the Kaaba in Mecca, Saudi Arabia. It is draped annually on the 9th day of the month of Dhu al-Hijjah, the day pilgrims leave for the plains of Mount Arafat during ...

factory. The administration of the

is carried out by the Agency of the General Presidency of the Affairs of the Prophet's Mosque, an subagency of the General Presidency of Haramain. The President of the agency is appointed for a 4-year term by the King of Saudi Arabia.

References

Government agencies of Saudi Arabia Government agencies established in 2012 2012 establishments in Saudi Arabia {{SaudiArabia-gov-stub